42 SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED. 



47214 to 47220— Continued. 



komhe Oliv.) by being glabrous. The seeds of this species are i-ecom- 

 mended for use in medicine in preference to those of any other, chiefly 

 because they yield crystalline strophanthin, whereas the established 

 official Strophanthus yields this glucosid in an amorphous condition. 

 Used for poisoning arrows. (Adapted from Holland, Useful Plants of 

 Nigeria, lit. 3, p. W.) 



47218. Strophanthus hispidus A. DC. Apocynacese. 



The seeds are an important drug, worth about 2 to 2i shillings (48 

 to 60 cents) per pound wholesale, commonly shipped in the pods, but 

 more often taken out, freed from the awns, and packed in bales. The 

 seeds are poisonous, the active principle being strophanthin; used in 

 Nigeria and generally in tropical Africa for arrow poison. It may be 

 propagated by seed, but the commercial supply is obtained, so far, from 

 wild plants, strong climbers making the seed difficult to collect, though, 

 according to Dalziel, as a shrub with long lax branches it is capable of 

 being grown in the neighborhood of towns and villages. The seed pods 

 are available in October at Abepa, Kabba Province, where the plant is 

 said to be plentiful. The seeds take several months to ripen. Billington 

 reports collecting a pod in October, then not quite ripe, after noting its 

 development for 10 months. (Adapted from Holland, Useful Plants of 

 Nigeria, pt. 3, p. 4^8.) 



47219. Syxsepalum dulcificum (Schum.) Dauiell. Sapotacea. 

 "Agbayun." 



This tropical African tree ffower* in the months of June, July, and 

 August, and usually produces a number of oblong or oval berries which 

 resemble olives; they are dull green at first; but gradually change, as 

 they ripen, into a dusky red. The seeds are inclosed in a thin, soft, 

 slightly saccharine pulp which, when eaten, has the peculiar property of 

 making the most sour and acidulous substances seem intensely sweet, 

 so that citric or tartaric acids, lime juice, vinegar, and all sour immature 

 fruits eaten thereafter taste as if they were composed solely of sac- 

 charine matter. The duration of this effect depends upon the amount of 

 berries eaten, and the degree of maturity they have attained ; when a 

 sufficient quantity has been taken their influence is commonly perceptible 

 throughout the day. This peculiar principle, however, is soon dissipated 

 if the fruits are suffered to remain in a ripe condition for a length of 

 time ; preserved fruits brought to England not only lost this property but 

 became extremely insipid. The natives of the Gold Coast often use them 

 to render their stale and acidulated kankies [maize bread] more pala- 

 table and to give sweetness to sour palm wine and pitto [beer made from 

 maize]. (Adapted from Pharmaceutical Journal, vol. 11, p. J,46.) 



47220. ViTEX GBANDiFOLiA Guerke. "Verbenaceis. 



" Oricta:' Near the River Nun, Vitex grandifolia is a small tree with 

 the habit of an Aralia, growing to a height of 25 feet. In Akwapim it is 

 a shrub, 10 feet in height, with cream-colored flowers, found at an altitude 

 of 1,000 feet. The fruit is edible, about the size of a small plum, and 

 is made into a kind of honey. The wood is used for making large drums. 

 (Adapted from Holland, Useful Plants of Nigeria, pt. 3, p. 526.) 



